The present invention broadly relates to an ammunition conveyor system and, more particularly, pertains to a new and improved construction of a cradle or bucket chain for infeeding or delivering cartridges from a cartridge supply, such as an ammunition magazine or container, through a cartridge infeed channel to an automatic firing weapon.
Generally speaking, the cradle or bucket chain of the present invention comprises a plurality of cradle elements or cradle link elements which are hingedly connected to one another. Each cradle element comprises a cradle or bucket for accommodating or receiving a cartridge. Attached to each cradle element are at least two lugs or eyelets for connecting this cradle element with its neighboring cradle elements, i.e. with a leading or downstream cradle element and with a trailing or upstream cradle element as seen in the direction of travel of the cradle or bucket chain. Furthermore, guide or guiding means are attached to each cradle element to allow such cradle element to be slidingly guided within the cartridge infeed channel.
A known ammunition conveyor system for delivering cartridges from an ammunition magazine to an automatic firing weapon is disclosed in European Patent Publication No. 0,152,549, published Aug. 28, 1985. With this ammunition conveyor system there are arranged between the ammunition magazine and the automatic firing weapon a cartridge infeed or supply channel and a disk channel in which there is provided an endless conveyor chain guided on a guide rail extending from the ammunition magazine to the automatic firing weapon. This guide rail possesses a T-shaped groove into which projects a corresponding T-shaped projection of the conveyor chain. The conveyor chain is extensible and retractable to maintain small the acceleration forces required for the ammunition infeed at the beginning and at the end of a firing burst or operation.
This known conveyor or cradle chain has the disadvantage that, on the one hand, there are required complicated guide rails or tracks and, on the other hand, no means or facilities are provided to push or infeed the cartridges transported to the automatic firing weapon into such weapon.